There seems to be a bottomless well of photo and video effects that can form the basis of a whole app: filters, HDR, slo-mo, tilt-shift, and collages, just to name a few. The time-lapse video shot in motion—aka hyperlapse—is now having its day in the sun, spurred by the popularity of fast-moving GoPro videos. Instagram is getting in on the action with a just-launched iPhone app named Hyperlapse (free). The app makes creating hyperlapse videos simpler than ever, or you can just use it as a video stabilizer (without time-lapse effect) if you prefer. Hyperlapse is currently only available for iOS, and it's designed for both iPhone and iPad. I took the new app out for a spin on my iPhone 5S and, though it does only one thing, it's impressive and fun to use.

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Shooting With HyperlapseGetting started with Hyperlapse and figuring out its interface is about as simple as can be: You don't even have to sign in or create an account to get going. On first run, you see a short slideshow that helps you get started. On subsequent launches all you see is the camera view, with a circular shooting button.

Hyperlapse can only work its magic on videos shot from within the app—you can't upload video from your Camera Roll and then apply Hyperlapse's special effects. If your scene isn't bright enough, the app pops up a message saying as much, and it suggests that you move to a brighter area. A feature that's not immediately evident is that, as with the iPhone's default camera app, in Hyperlapse you can tap any spot on the screen to adjust the focus and aperture to center on that spot. (You can't adjust exposure and focus on separate points, as you can with some other apps.)

Shooting is a simple matter of tapping the circular shutter button—the only button on the screen. You don't have to hold it down as you do with Vine, nor is there a time limit as in that 6-second video app. Once you're done shooting, you can choose the degree to which you will speed up your video, ranging from 1x to 12x, with stops at each even number. By default, the app chooses 6x, which is pretty effective for many time-lapse subjects. If you only want to take advantage of the app's stabilization, you choose 1x, and the speed doesn't change.

After choosing your speed, you press a check mark, or an X, if you don't want to proceed. Depending on the length of your footage, a circular progress bar slowly processes the video and saves the final product to your camera roll. A 3-minute video took about 20 seconds for me. Note that once you hit the check mark to save, you can no longer adjust the speed factor.

Staying Stable Hyperlapse's stabilization is especially remarkable given that it's combined with speeding up the video, which normally makes it even shakier. Microsoft researchers earlier this month released a project, curiously also called Hyperlapse that addresses this same problem—smoothing out time-lapse videos shot while the camera is in motion—but an Instagram rep informed me that its app uses a different technology. Here's a sample Hyperlapse of a quick tour of the PCMag.com Labs for an idea of how smooth the video can be.

Next it's time to share your amazing video creation. You have just two choices: Instagram (of course), and Facebook (of course). Afterward, you can manually upload the saved version to your camera roll to any app that accepts video—even Vine, since that app's last update. Since Facebook sharing is built into iOS, you can share to it directly. Searching Instagram for the #hyperlapse hashtag already turns up lots of videos shot through the app.

Hypercool The stabilization and speed effects produced by Hyperlapse are impressive, and any iPhone-toting video buffs should do themselves a favor and download the app. Its simplicity means that even people with no video editing expertise whatsoever can create results that were formerly a possibility only for video virtuosi.

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About the Author

Michael Muchmore is PC Magazine?s lead analyst for software and Web applications. A native New Yorker, he has at various times headed up PC Magazine?s coverage of Web development, enterprise software, and display technologies. Michael cowrote one of the first overviews of Web Services for a general audience. Before that he worked on PC Magazine?s S... See Full Bio

Hyperlapse From Instagram (for iPhone)

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